marazzi architetti's bosco dello sport in venice alludes to DNA strands

bosco dello sport to span 115 hectares in tessera, venice

Italian practice Marazzi Architetti was commissioned to design the masterplan for the Bosco Dello Sport (The Sports Forest) in Venice: a venue intended for professional competitions but also daily sports practice, promotion of social inclusion and awareness of environmental issues, as well as spreading a culture of health and psychological and physical wellbeing. The intervention, adorned with Murano-inspired glass, spans 115 hectares in the Tessera district, near the Marco Polo airport, easily accessible thanks to existing connections to the airport and those under constructions such as the new railroad and train station.

A careful analysis of the territory revealed the lowland Mestre Woods that surround local urban areas, a key element of inspiration. The landscape takes cente stage and pervades the site affected by urban transformation, with 62.5 hectares of woodland, 16.5 hectares of equipped green spaces and about 60,000 new trees, half of which are high-trunk trees, connecting the Dese river with the Northern Lagoon.

all renders © Marazzi Architetti

a DNA-inspired design combining sports and civic activities

Architecture and infrastructure integrate gently with trees and nature thanks to a planovolumetric aesthetic that recalls a DNA strand or a complex cellular system, in which each element contributes to the efficiency and life of the system itself. The result is a fully equipped park, where professional sports, daily amateur practice, training, recreation, and entertainment coexist as intertwined elements. ‘Traditonally, large sports facilities remain unused for most of the week and citizens can only use them as mere spectators‘, notes architect Davide Marazzi. ‘Bosco dello Sport project, offers an innovative and ‘civil’ model for sport training, aggregation and inclusion. A project that refers to and combines through a different point of view two references: American campuses, where training, sports and sociality are perfectly integrated, and the model of Munich’s Olympiapark, an engaging place for sports and recreation surrounded by greenery.’

Bosco Dello Sport Complex by Marazzi Architetti

The program unfolds into seven sections. (1) a 16,000-spectators soccer and rugby stadium; (2) a 10,000-spectator multifunctional indoor arena for sports competitions (basketball, volleyball, handball, boxing, soccer, tennis), concerts and performances; (3) 8,000 square meters equipped with outdoor sports equipment (fitness, skateboard and pump track areas; basketball, volleyball and soccer fields); (4) 5,000 square meters dedicated to outdoor activities and events; 2,000 square meters of playground with leisure and educational equipment; (5) paths and trails for unstructured activity (running, biking, nature observation, etc.); (7) a 6-hectares sports education campus with training center and related services, an indoor and outdoor swimming center with beach arena, a raquet center (tennis, paddle, pickleball), a five-a-side football pitch, and guest quarters and services for sportsmen.

the complex spans 115 hectares in the Tessera district of Venice

Marazzi Architetti celebrates venetian heritage with glass

For the new stadium and indoor arena, Marazzi Architetti designed ‘narrative architectures’, integrated with the setting of the Bosco and Venetian context. This space emerges as a discreet presence with a strong territorial identity and represents a deep connection to the environment. The structure is wrapped in a ‘natural skin’ that pays homage to recurring elements of the lagoon area, such as reeds or the sequences of poles and ‘briccole’ used for mooring gondolas and signaling waterways.

The covered arena, on the other hand, is inspired by glass windows – typical of Murano — joining colored glass disks, assembled and bound together with metal profiles. This particular cladding recalls Venetian palaces, in which the facade and its water reflections balance the relationship between the building’s volumes and mass with the city and lagoon. Both structures feature flexible solutions, namely retractable grandstands and modular walls, as well as ample services and support spaces to effectively and quickly manage transformations and the rearrangement of areas.

colored glass disks, assembled and bound together with metal profiles

bosco dello sport embodies a carbon free philosophy

Moving on to environmental impact and sustainability, Bosco Dello Sport adopts a carbon free philosophy and follows the Minimum Environmental Criteria (CAM) set by the Ministry of Ecological Transition, as well as the DNSH (Do Not Significant Harms) principle set by Next Generation EU. Moroever, all buildings will be designed with NZEB (Nearly Zero Energy Building) energy performance level thanks to Marazzi Architetti favoring materials and construction techniques with a low environmental impact in their life cycle. This approach will be met with renewable energy sources like heat pumps and large photovoltaic panels placed on the roofs of the buildings.

The complex will also adopt a system of rainwater recovery and reuse for irrigation and hydro-sanitary purposes and mitigate the heat island effect by minimizing impervious surfaces and maximizing the presence of trees. Lastly, adopting a building management systems (BMS) will ensure high management efficiency of buildings and related facilities.

a planovolumetric aesthetic that recalls a DNA strands

Afer a technical, urban and administrative planning path of only two years, the Bosco dello Sport project by Marazzi Architetti has reached the executive phase: the first construction works have just begun and will be completed by 2026, for an investment of 315 million euros, of which two thirds financed by the Venice Municipality’s own resources and one third by contribution of the Italian government.

Bosco Dello Sport is designed for professional competitions and civic activities